THOMASVILLE – Rising unemployment is driving down enrollment at some child care centers.
Some centers are still at, or near, capacity despite the recession, but there's concern about the future.
Unemployment is reaching record highs
In the Triad alone it reached 8.5 percent in December, and the growing jobless trend has had a very real impact on A Child's World, which operates three child care centers, including one in Thomasville.
"We've seen about a 20 percent cut across the board with all three facilities," Rena McCaffrey said. "About two years ago our enrollment was about 160. Right now we're about 132."
McCaffrey said some parents whose children were enrolled just a few weeks ago have turned to other family members for help.
"We've had a lot of parents that have just lost their jobs and just gone to alternative measures because they can't afford to pay for child care," McCaffrey said.
It's a different story at Our Children's House in Greensboro.
"We have pretty much maintained our numbers," Janet Auman said. "We do have a few spots that are available right now, but we have not suffered any loss of our families due to that."
Enrollment at Friendly Avenue Christian Preschool, also in Greensboro, has been steady, but the center's administrator said they're concerned about the weeks and months ahead.
"We do know that in today's time, families walk in one morning with a job and they can just as easily pick their children up in the afternoon and not have a job," Sandy Johnson said. "So those are growing concerns that all of us in the industry have."
McCaffrey said what's happening to the families of many of the children at A Child's World is disheartening.
"We've had parents that have come in here with child care bills for two and three months that are past due and we've tried to work with every single one of them," McCaffrey said. "I think we're all trying to survive at this point and the economy, of course, doesn't look like it's going to get any better."